PASS IT ON ISSUE 61

PASS IT ON - ISSUE 61: DATE 10/10/05





Hi everyone! I hope you have all had a fantastic week. Thanks to all who
have contributed and a special hello to all new members. Thank you also to
everyone who has offered support and encouragement, I really do appreciate
it. Please enjoy this week's issue of PASS IT ON.





A Disclaimer of Liability

Please ensure that your submissions are ACCURATE and clear. I will accept no
responsibility for any errors or omissions contained in the information
submitted. PLEASE be careful.

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in the subject heading.





WHAT IS PASS IT ON?

PASS IT ON is a weekly, on-line, interactive, networking newsletter for
those involved with or interested in the children's writing industry. It is
emailed to subscribers every Monday.

PASS IT ON will survive for as long as YOU the CONTRIBUTOR determine. I am
the collection point for YOUR submissions. I am one cog in a tool that has
the potential to be very powerful. (submission guidelines can be found at
the end of the newsletter)

If you wish to receive PASS IT ON - email me, Jackie Hosking at
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newsletter and an invoice. If you like what you see, please return the
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If you join in July it will cost you $24.00 If you join in August, it will
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(all subscriptions will then be due on July 1st 2006)

Please contribute as often as you can and be assured that I will treat your
contact details with the utmost confidentiality. I look forward to making
many more new friends.

Past issues may be viewed at my website www.jackiehosking.com



GENERAL INFORMATION
TERRORIST BOMBS IN BALI WON'T STOP OZ AUTHORS GOING TO UBUD WRITERS FESTIVAL

Letter from UBUD Writers Festival
2 October 2005

Dear Friends,

We are once again, deeply saddened by the October 1, 2005 terrorist attacks
in Kuta. We also extend our sympathies to the lives lost over this
senseless act of violence.

Our Festival was born out of the first bombing in Kuta. It was an attempt
to lift the depleted spirit of the people of Ubud and use the power of the
written word to heal and strengthen.

The Ubud Writers & Readers Festival will go ahead as planned. We will not
allow the terrorists to stop an event that we believe ultimately will
benefit all layers of the Ubud community.

High security at all venues will be guaranteed. This will include:
uniformed and plain-clothed police, bomb detectors, sniffer dogs and
security checks. All venues are distant from the road and parking in front
of these venues will not be allowed.

Our theme "Between Worlds" now reflects a life between peace and violence
and how we survive in a changing world. We hope you will support us at a
time when we need your help more than ever before.

Janet De Neefe
Festival Director
Ubud Writers & Readers Festival

I agree with Janet and I'm going.

Susanne Gervay



SEEKING

Is it worthwhile trying to locate an editor with whom you have had some
dealing with in one company and then has left said company?
This has happened to me a couple of times, where I get interest from an
editor only to be told some months later when following up on work that I
have sent that the person has left and the current staff have no idea what
the previous editor wanted with my work!
I'd be interested in other's thoughts.
Sharon




REPLIES TO SEEKING


re: Matt and his offer from a publisher at 10% royalties...this is the usual
rate, far better than a once off payment. Also get the publisher to offer
you several complimentary copies of book and the ability to buy more copies
at cost price. When the book is published don't forget to register for CAL,
PLR and ELR
Congrats Matt.
Sharon Greenaway


Just on that issue of US postage - I ordered some US air mail stamps
(for return postage to Australia) via the www.usps.com website on 26
Sept and they arrived on 7 Oct, in a huge cardboard mailer that hardly
fitted in my (large) post office box. There was a US$6 shipping and handling
fee. The site gives International postage costs and weights.
Best wishes

Clare Harris




NEW PUBLICATIONS

Anita Bell is very happy to say that her new book - "Your kids money: how to
earn it, save it and set them up for life" is now released:
http://www.randomhouse.com.au/WEB_ASP/ttle_detail.asp?isbn=1740513681

It's financial literacy for the whole family and can guarantee there's no
other book like it in Australia - or anywhere else as far as we can see!
Aside from all the hard-core finance shortcuts and inside info, it has
everything from financial literacy exams for teachers, roleplaying games for
students, "financial action thriller" bed-time stories and money games for
toddlers, commonwealth scholarships, inside tips on remote area bonuses
etc....

Also

"Project Apocalypse" , the sequel to Crystal Coffin will be launched this
December/January holidays:
http://www.randomhouse.com.au/WEB_ASP/ttle_detail.asp?isbn=1740517903
for teens to adults.



A story by Janeen Brian, Below and Beyond, is included in the anthology,
Stories for 8 year olds, published by Random House.





SPECIAL EVENTS

Stop Laughing This Is Serious Gallery in Blackheath will be launching
The New Australian Bookplate Society with an exhibition of
contemporary and historical bookplates and ephemera at the Gallery on
Saturday 22nd October. If you would like to find out more about this
new society or submit a bookplate (or ex libris) that you have
designed please contact Lis Bastian as soon as possible on
02 47877533 or email ebastian@stoplaughing.com.au


The Society aims to promote the design, production and collecting of
bookplates in Australia and bookplates will need to reach the gallery
by the 18th October. If you'd like to commission a bookplate the
gallery will be building a register of artists interested in
designing individualised bookplates according to your interests. A
great idea for an extremely personal Christmas present!

Bookplates can be sent framed or unframed to the gallery. The
exhibition will run for one month in conjunction with an exhibition
of original illustrations by Pixie O'Harris (including her
bookplates) and the illustrations from a new Citrus Press book "Wild
Neighbours" - a Humane Society International book with extremely
useful information on the humane approach to living with wildlife
(written by Ian Temby and illustrated by Lis Bastian). There will
also be wildlife bookplates available in conjunction with the launch
of this book.

All three exhibitions celebrate the Gallery's 3rd birthday!

Stop Laughing This Is Serious Gallery
3 Hat Hill Rd, Blackheath
open weekends or by appointment



MARKET OPPORTUNITIES

©
Lobster Press Ltd. 2000-2005
All rights reserved

Guidelines for Authors http://www.lobsterpress.com/html/guidelines_a.html
Please note that Lobster Press does not respond to queries about the status
of unsolicited manuscripts. We apologize for this. We will contact you only
if we wish to publish your manuscript. Further, we regret that we are unable
to return manuscripts, but recycle all materials.

Lobster Press publishes high-quality fiction and non-fiction books for
children, tweens, teens, and their families. We are currently seeking:

. Original fiction targeted at young adults aged 15+. We are searching for
contemporary, character-driven work with edgy plot lines. We are
particularly interested in materials that would appeal to boys, although we
are open to all YA queries. Ideally, protagonists will be between 15 and 18
years old. Word count 30,000 - 50,000.

. High interest fiction for struggling or reluctant readers aged 12-18. We
are looking for fast-paced, high-interest subject matter appropriate for
12-18 year olds and written at an 8-11 year old reading level. Word count
15,000-25,000.

We also seek reluctant reader fiction geared toward new, young Canadians
(i.e. immigrants and landed citizens). These manuscripts must have
accessible vocabulary and relevant subject matter for those who are learning
English as a second language.

. Millennium Generation Series non-fiction books or children's reference
books for youths aged 8-12, 12-15, or 15+. In all age ranges, we are looking
for works that address topics that are highly relevant to today's youth.
Subjects of particular interest are: self-development and empowerment,
science, and pets. We also seek reluctant reader manuscripts in this
category. Word count 15,000 - 25,000.

. Christmas picture book manuscripts for children ages 7 and under.

All manuscripts submitted must be copies only. Do not send originals as we
will recycle any and all manuscripts we choose not to publish. Manuscripts
must be typewritten and double-spaced. Please provide your name, address,
and telephone number on the title page, as well as the word count of your
work. Print your name on every page of the manuscript. Please send complete
manuscripts, or, if this is not possible, a minimum of 3 chapters. Unless
you are a professional artist, please do not send illustrations with your
manuscript.

Each submission must be accompanied by a cover letter, a resume, and a
synopsis of the story.

Send your submission by mail to the address given below. Stories sent by
email or by fax will not be considered.

No editorial comment will be forthcoming unless Lobster Press feels that a
manuscript is publishable.

Simultaneous submissions will be accepted, on the condition that it is
clearly stated in the cover letter that another publisher is considering
your work. Multiple submissions of up to five manuscripts are welcome.

Never send original manuscripts.

Please address all submissions to:

Lobster Press
1620 Sherbrooke Street West
Suites C & D
Montreal, QC
H3H 1C9

Please specify the genre of your work clearly on the envelope.

Thank you!





COMPETITIONS/AWARDS


The Winnies - update

We are very happy to at last provide everyone at PIO with the Judge's
Report on The Winnies! These will also be available on the website,
hopefully by the time you read this. We are in the throes of planning
our next undertaking, and will keep you posted!

Nippers: stories for 3-6 year olds
Judge Hazel Edwards
www.hazeledwards.com

Since Words in Winter celebrates language, the enjoyment of words and
imaginative and skilful use of language has been a consideration in the
judging of the Nippers entries.

FIRST: Clouds and Rhinos
The strengths of 'Clouds and Rhinos ' include the fun with words such
as Dad's 'yuck truck' and the juxtaposing of the reality of the dad who
smells like bricks and has rhino hands and the fantasy of the clover
wishes, encouraged by the parent. The story plays on all senses and is
well structured around the theme of reality versus fantasy. The title
suggest the contrasts within the story which should read well aloud. The
accepting child-parent relationship is explored with originality and
fresh examples such as putting up with an out-of-tune father. But it is
the sustained perspective of the child and the reassurance offered by
the Rhino-Dad, which makes this story a winner.

SECOND: Hiccups
This is a cumulative, noisy story and likely to appeal as a read
aloud.
The subject of embarrassing moments linked to hiccups is well chosen
for the age group, although the word 'hiccup' is challenging. Good twist
at the end of the story and the characters are distinctive. Funny.

THIRD: Wordy
This is an original idea of the gift of a book which eats words and a
girl who learns to read. The language is challenging for a 3-6 year old
who is likely to enjoy the sounds of the 'longer' words which the book
demands.


Tacker: stories for 7-10 year olds
Judge Krista Bell
www.kristabell.com

FIRST: Splat!
This story exemplifies the aim of The Winnies to celebrate language
and foster the writing of imaginative stories for young readers: it was
the stand-out entry. From the clever and enticing title onwards, this
well-crafted story is consistently child oriented and appealing, has
originality, plus a unique, parochial setting. From the very first
sentence SPLAT! throws the young reader into the story and, using
convincing dialogue, urges them to read on, sustaining the interest
level, without ever forcing its fresh humour or using offensive
language. SPLAT! has an intriguing story line with some excellent
twists and turns that keep the young reader guessing what might happen.
Readers of any age will laugh out loud! It is refreshing that this story
celebrates the unique, positive relationship between students and
their teachers in a small country school. Its satisfying ending ties up the
story threads convincingly and will leave a smile on faces young and
old. Congratulations to its author - this story has the often sought,
but rarely found, wow factor that makes it a worthy winner of the
inaugural Winnies for Tackers!

SECOND: The Autumn Princess
This modern day fairy tale farce is an outstanding runner-up in The
Winnies 2005 because of its joyful inventiveness. The story has an
enchanting edge to it that will appeal to an audience of young fantasy
readers in particular and it could fit comfortably into an anthology
of this genre. The story line is fresh and imaginative, with the
characters having that certain something that will endear them to young
readers. The clever yet totally ridiculous humour is most appealing and for
the most part the plot is satisfying, although THE AUTUMN PRINCESS would
benefit from the input of a good professional editor.

THIRD:
There is no third placing awarded this year, as no entry was
considered to be of sufficient standard to receive this honour.




WRITING COURSES/WORKSHOPS
Create a Kids' Book Workshops: Novel workshop with Jennifer Dabbs and
Virgina 15th October, picture books and other kids' stuff on 22nd October
(at Heathcote near Bendigo) and 29th October (Albert Park, Melbourne with
artist Jacqui Young). All workshops $120, lunch supplied, bookings
essential. Dr Virginia Lowe tutor at all of them. vlowe@alphalink.com.au or
9578 5689.




NEW WORKSTYLE SKILLS



HAVE YOUR SAY


FROM AUTHOR DIANNE (DI) BATES

It's sad news to hear that Jonathan Shaw is retiring from his position as
editor (for the past 16 years) of the NSW Department of Education School
Magazine. My husband Bill Condon and I are both full-time freelance writers
who have contributed to SM for several decades and more. Jonathan has been a
fantastic editor - the best - one who has been prompt and efficient with his
and his staff's reading and assessment of our submissions and with our
payments. Often Jonathan has kindly added a personal note to his letters
accepting or rejecting our work. Bill and I will sorely miss him at the
helm of the magazine and wish him the very best of luck for a long and happy
retirement, and with his future forays into writing. I hope publishers treat
Jonathan as kindly as he has treated his SM contributors.



FROM AN AUTHOR

Well it's nice to know that Random House Australia is increasing its
children's list, but will the company now improve the way it treats
submitting authors? The last rejection I received from RH came after I'd
made several enquiries (none of which were responded to): I received my
manuscript, unread, in its original package and without even the courtesy of
a rejection letter: this was after eight months of it hanging around RH's
slush heap. What next: storage fees?

I wonder if PIO readers might start a tally of how many months publishers
take to respond to submissions, so we can all compare notes. Penguin Books,
for instance, recently rejected one of my manuscripts after it had
languished in its heap for over 20 months! My submissions to Blake, Black
Dog and Harcourt Education are now over six months old. This week I sent
manuscripts off to two publishers: the total postage was $26. If there are
any publishers in PIO Land who are reading this submission, please note that
my family is going into debt because I keep sending you manuscripts! My
experience from talking with editors leads me to believe that they are
well-meaning people but with appalling time-management skills. Give authors
a break, won't you? Any given manuscript might have taken me two years or
longer to write. Surely it can only take you two minutes to read the first
couple of pages and decide whether or not you want to reject it? And if you
like it, well eight weeks - twelve at the max - ought to be well and truly
enough time for you to get your act together and accept it.



FROM AN AUTHOR

Further to the discussion regarding Fairfield BookFeast, I've noticed that
Australian children's authors whose publishers grant them great publicity
and who have big book sales - such as Morris Gleitzman, Emily Rhodda, Gretel
Killeen, Andrew Daddo, Wendy Harmer - never attend children's book luncheons
as volunteers. Now why would that be? Perhaps there's a point to be made for
insisting on payment for attendance at the luncheons, or even for organisers
to purchase attending authors' and illustrators' books to give as prizes on
the day. After all, the schools pay for their students to eat the luncheon
food; why not reward the guests, even in token ways? A petrol voucher is one
reward idea, even computer-generated posters made by students, or, as
someone suggested last week, paid gigs at schools for those who attend and
give up a day's work. Maybe all of the schools should be made to buy
multiple copies of books from guests at their table? I agree with the PIO
contributor, as well as the "feast," put the "book" into the luncheon. At
the moment books seem to be missing and the day ought to be called
AutographFeast. I am an author, not an autograph; I would most certainly
like to see more representation of books at these luncheons. Daisy



FROM AUTHOR Janette Brazel

I too attended the Fairfield Bookfeast earlier in September and had a
wonderful time. The children at my table had read two of my books and were
keen to hear about my latest ones. Yes it was noisy during the speeches and
would've been difficult for the presenters. Some tables listened better than
others.

Still being fairly 'green' at this business I enjoyed the opportunity to
talk with kids, those who had read my books, and hopefully convince some
others to try them! I have made one new fan from the Bookfeast. She read my
latest book, reviewed it and sent me a couple of lovely emails - that alone
made the whole experience worthwhile.

It was also good to network with fellow authors - something I find a little
daunting but I know is important. It was lovely to put faces to names,
especially those I have met through PIO. So overall, for me, it was
worthwhile and I'll be putting up my hand to go again next year.



FROM AUTHOR Christine Harris

Regarding the issue of signing bits of paper.
Of course, it is good to be flexible. There are always exceptions. You
judge each situation on its own merits. But I stopped signing scraps of
paper years ago. It was after a school visit in Melbourne. The teachers
had cut up hundreds of tiny squares of paper and the whole primary school
lined up for signatures. Later, as I made my way to my taxi, I found bits
of paper on the ground, sitting in puddles, the ink blurring.
Which wasn't as bad as the time I was offered a greasy, tomato sauce stained
paper bag to sign.
There are alternatives to an embarrassing NO. Let the organisers know
beforehand. I have a prepared sheet which I send to each place that books
me, stating what I do, what I require, and what I will and won't sign.
Some booking agents have a note about not signing scraps of paper in the
booking sheets they send to schools.
A child who cannot afford to buy a book is not disadvantaged if you also
sign autograph books or diaries. Something more permanent than a scrap of
paper (or pie bag) headed for a puddle.
And then there is tact. Often, it is not what you say, but how you say it.



HAVE YOUR SAY

As a teacher/librarian this year was my first visit to the Fairfield
Bookfeast and certainly not my last. An enormous thank you to all those
authors and illustrators who took part. It is not a cheap day
because of venue and travel costs but your generosity brought it into the
realms of reality for my school. My students had a ball and came back with a
renewed desire to read the work of authors they had met 'for real'. I guess
the autograph thing was a bit tedious for the authors but the kids find it
fun and had a great time showing these trophies round back at school. At
least a dozen children have already asked if they could go next year.
Thanks a gain to all those concerned.
Bev Mac.



HAVE YOUR SAY

Dear Author
I was saddened to hear of your experience with schoolchildren
at the book luncheon. I could understand your frustration and
would like to share my recent experience.

My four (homeschooled) children and I visited the Brisbane
Writers Festival last Thursday. As a new Children's Writer, I
wanted to experience the Festival and, as avid readers, my 3
older children (6-10) were very interested in meeting their
favourite authors, Bonnie Bryant and John Flanagan. Travelling
by bus and train from the Sunshine Coast, this represented a
12-hour day for us, not a 'day off school'.

I was truly impressed with both the presentations by authors
and the behaviour of my young children. The workshops we
attended were arranged for Grades 6-9 or 9-11, yet my
children gave those engaging authors their full attention.
Afterwards we had the opportunity to meet some authors in
person, including some signing of much-loved books. These are
now treasured items and today we began a scrapbook to
further commemorate our trip.

My wish is that you could have had similar experiences with
dedicated fans. I also thought that your comment about earning
the books, rather than winning by raffle, was a better option.

Happy Writing
Regards
Angela



FROM AUTHOR Fee Seivers

RE: Congratulations to Fee Siever on the publication of her Writer's Diary,
reviewed favourably last week in PIO. I have enjoyed her input to PIO!
Fee - I note we can buy your diary from you direct, have you self-published
(tips please) or did you put together a proposal to Flat Chat press? Would
love to hear your story...DS>

Hi DS
Firstly thanks to DS for the positive comments - but I must clarify that the
Australian Writers Diary is not mine. However, I will tell you the Flat Chat
Press story.
The diary was actually the brainchild of author, Sarah Hammond, but we all
had a hand in putting the information together. FCP is a group of students,
mainly mature aged, who have been studying Professional Writing and Editing
at Greensborough NMIT part-time for the past few years. We started off with
the idea to set up a small press to publish the work of students and
teachers within the course. FCP has boomed and has become much more than
that. We are now publishing the works of authors outside of NMIT. It all
happened in a very short space of time.
We are set up as a Small Press module where what we do is publish and learn
the processes of publishing. We began at the end of 2004 with the 2005 diary
as a way to get some money in the kitty, to allow us to publish other
things. After great sales in a very short time, NMIT could see we were self
sufficient and gave us the go ahead for the Press to operate. It is headed
by Barry Carozzi, author and teacher at NMIT, and his band of merry
students. It is a learning experience so we can gather skills in publishing
that we may be able to use in the outside world. I believe we are the only
institute to be publishing the work of outside authors. Most courses have
inside publishing opportunities.
We have the benefit of being able to do small print runs so we keep our cash
flow flowing. And we are now able to offer excellent self-publishing options
too. Many of our books are up to their 3rd print run so our books sell very
well, considering we are very new and very small.
So far, we have produced 11 fantastic publications in only about 18 months.
That's pretty good going. Our overheads are minimal and we offer our authors
30% after all our costs have been met. We are split into groups: poetry,
fiction, nonfiction, children's and special projects, like the diary. Each
group has a main manager and a band of workers. We all end up editing and
proofing, marketing and working in other areas where needed. Needless to
say, we all end up doing work outside of class time as 3 hours a week is
just not enough.
Some of our books include authors such as: Doris Leadbetter, Myron Lysenko,
Ian McBryde, Sandon Mcleod, Sarah Hammond, Helen Lucas, Bernie Neville,
Sarah Cowan, Fee Sievers (that's me!) and Barry Carozzi. FCP has been
involved in launches and readings with the authors and poets. It's been
great fun for all of us. We have another 15 books that will be published
before the end of this year. So, we have been busy. We're lucky to be given
this valuable opportunity. And we are getting people's work published which
is fantastic, considering how hard it is to get published these days.
So, after all that, some of you might be interested in sending us your
manuscript. But I must warn you that we have been inundated and any
manuscripts received now are not likely to be considered until 2006 - but we
don't mind if you also send them elsewhere at the same time. We are not
precious like that as we want you to have every opportunity to get your work
in print.
I am also involved with BlueCatBooks, another local small publisher in my
area. BlueCat are publishing some of my poetry in an anthology due out this
November and I have been commissioned to write the 7th book in their Brave
Kids series.
Leone Peguero from BlueCatBooks, mentioned in the last PIO, has also taught
me a lot about publishing over the past few years. She is very generous with
her skills and knowledge.
I guess I'd better stop here - but feel free to email me on
prohort@primus.com.au with any questions you may have or email Barry
Carozzi on flatchatpress@nmit.vic.edu.au. Or send your ms to:
'Flat Chat Press
NMIT, Civic Dve,
Greensborough, 3088'
The only guidelines we have are that you send a legible ms with your name
and details, with a covering letter telling us a bit about yourself and your
writing experience. Include a brief synopsis and a word count.
I am also very pleased to be involved with such a useful and professional
resource like PIO. Keep it up Jackie. This is what it's all about - sharing
and networking. Thanks all - hope this was useful.



HAVE YOUR SAY

The article about Julie Davey's successful self-publishing venture was a
wonderful inspiration to all of us. Even if we don't plan to take that step,
her experience shows that goals can be realised if we believe in ourselves.
Full marks to Julie, and a capital A for that positive attitude. Thank you
also to Edel Wignell for the article. Teena



FROM AN AUTHOR

BLAKE EDUCATION
Blake Education may have changed its editor, but I've been sufficiently
burned never to submit anything to that company again. I submitted something
that was shortlisted for a Gigglers series eons ago, when Maureen O'Keefe
was editor, and every time I sought an update it was "still being
considered" on this "shortlist". Finally, when I enquired once again, I
discovered that Maureen had left the company and my shortlisted manuscript
could not be found. Sophia Oravecz was very sympathetic, and kindly asked
me to re-submit the manuscript to her. To Sophia's credit (and I'm very
grateful to her), she gave me an answer on it in a matter of days. By that
stage, I was disgusted, disgruntled and angry that the manuscript had
floated around at Blake Education for an extraordinary period of time and
disappeared into a black hole, never to be seen again. I will never waste
my time again submitting to that company. Two years to give an answer on a
book is disgraceful, not to mention highly unprofessional. I have a small
business and if I took that amount of time to respond to my clients' needs,
I wouldn't be in business.



HAVE YOUR SAY

Edel Wignell writes about Girls' Business:

Last week I sent interviews with Julie Davey to indicate one person's
experiences in self-publishing. At the end was a list of works, including
two books written and self-published by Fay Angelo, Heather Pritchard and
Rose Stewart, with illustrations by Julie Davey. I think that these books
will be of interest to many PIO readers.

The fact that some girls are reaching puberty at the age of eight years, and
many more before the age of 12 (which was once considered to be the average
age) inspired the three women to write the first book.

Fay Angelo, Heather Pritchard and Rose Stewart, Secret Girls' Business,
designed and illustrated by Julie Davey, Fay Heather Rose Publications,
Melbourne, 2003

This book helps young girls understand the physical and emotional changes
they undergo on reaching puberty, and shows them how to cope in positive and
practical ways - with themselves, their family and friends.

Fay Angelo, Heather Pritchard and Rose Stewart, Special Girls' Business,
designed and illustrated by Julie Davey, Fay Heather Rose Publications,
Melbourne 2003

Girls with special needs, including intellectual and physical disabilities,
communication disorders and autism, and their mothers and carers, will find
this book useful when the girls reach puberty.

With their zany humour, Julie Davey's illustrations bring a light-hearted
touch, as well as information, to the books.

Availability - see two websites:
www.secretgb.com
www.aforattitude.com.au




ARTICLES

What Is Humor?
A Definition of Humor That Works For Me

Rick Walton ©

Printed with permission

In my research on humor theory I was unable to find a definition of humor
that worked for me. But the research did help me fine-tune a theory that I
have been developing over twenty years, a theory of humor that meets my
needs.
The definition I have come up with is "Humor is surprise without threat or
promise."
To develop this definition I first analyzed all of the types of humor I
could think of, trying to discover anything they had in common. And I did,
like several humor theorists, find that all humor has in it an element of
surprise. I began there.

Surprise
To be surprised, you must have an expectation of how the world works. When
something happens contrary to that expectation, you are surprised.

Depends on Experience and Knowledge
What surprises you depends on your experience and knowledge. Since everyone
has different experience and knowledge, everyone has a different expectation
of how the world works. Therefore what surprises you might not surprise
someone else. Your expectation of the world might not include an event that
another's expectation might include.

Fields of Ignorance
Everyone's expectations of how the world works includes fields of ignorance,
where your expectation is that anything can happen because you don't know
the field well enough to know what can happen. Most people will not be
surprised when a nuclear physicist makes a scientific error because they
don't know enough about nuclear physics to know that it is an error. Most
babies are blissfully ignorant of the "surprises" going on around them
because their understanding of the world includes mostly fields of
ignorance.
So if one person is not surprised by an event that surprises another, it
might be 1) because their expectation of the working of the world includes
that event, or 2) the event might be in the person's field of ignorance.
(Although 2 is actually a subset of 1, because in a field of ignorance, you
expect anything, and therefore are not surprised when anything happens.)
What if the physicist, however, in discussing a theory of physics, starts
talking about how dancing ducks determine the movement of the planets? Then
we might be surprised, because though the physicist is working in our field
of ignorance, by bringing in dancing ducks, he has overlaid other fields
that we do have understandings of, and therefore can be surprised in.

Too Much Surprise
Another problem with humor and surprise comes when everything is surprising.
When everything is surprising, eventually the expectation is for surprise,
and therefore, ironically, the surprise is no longer surprising. This might
be why wacky, intense humor works best in short spurts and is harder to pull
off in longer works. Wacky picture books are common. Wacky novels are rare.
Saturday Night Live sketches work well for a few minutes, but have a much
harder time carrying over into a full-length movie. Jim Carrey was hilarious
in his short "In Living Color" sketches. But when he tried to carry his
mugging and facial contortions through an entire full-length movie, they
became tedious and it wasn't until he began doing character-driven movies,
where the trademark Carrey insanity was only occasional and not constant,
that he began to be more successful.

Once I'd determined what all humor had in common, however, I began looking
for exceptions, situations where there was surprise, but no humor. I found
many. I studied these situations to see if they had anything in common, and
they did. One thing that many non-humorous surprises had in common was a
sense of threat.
If I'm walking down a dark street and a mugger jumps me, I am surprised, but
I won't find the situation funny. Along with the surprise there must be a
lack of threat. Several humor theorists have suggested this also. A common
theme in some humor theories is the idea that the surprise must be in the
context of "play". I believe they were getting close. Not all humor has to
be in the context of play. When Bill Clinton, in his 2000 inaugural address,
uses the word "liberal" when he meant "literal", there was no sense of play,
yet it was surprising and funny. When you are playing, however, you are free
from a sense of threat.

Without Threat
Humor is Surprise Without Threat. Surprise With Threat is not humor.

Unfunny Threats
Bombs falling out of the air are a surprise, but they are not funny. Pizzas
falling out of the air would also be a surprise, but they might be funny,
unless they fall on you (in which case it still might be funny to a viewer,
unless they were concerned about your well-being), or in case they're
falling on something that you will then be required to clean up.

Ethnic Jokes
Ethnic jokes can be funny if told by a teller of the ethnicity. Eddie Murphy
can tell black jokes. Leo Rosten could tell Jewish jokes. Paul Rodriguez can
tell hispanic jokes. (It's the same with ethnic epithets, but that's a whole
'nother issue.) Our society has grown more conscious, however, of other
cultures, and there is less and less tolerance for a person of one ethnicity
telling jokes about a person of another ethnicity because a person of the
ethnicity of the joke will feel an implied threat. Even if the listener is
not of the ethnicity, the listener might value members of the joke's
ethnicity and feel a sympathetic implied threat, thereby not finding the
joke funny. If the listener not of the joke's ethnicity is listening to an
ethnic joke told by a person of the joke's ethnicity, however, even if the
listener is sympathetic, he might find the joke funny because the teller,
being of the joke's ethnicity, does not imply a threat. One way that a
person can tell a joke about another ethnicity is if the joke puts the
ethnic group in a positive light. (This has to go beyond a joke that
portrays blacks as having rhythm or Jews as being good with money, because
these traits, though generally positive, are common stereotypes that have
been used in the past to subjugate, and are therefore implied threats.)
What applies to ethnic jokes applies to jokes about any group. Insiders
telling jokes about the group represent less of a threat than outsiders
telling the same jokes.

Other Threatening Attempts at Humor
"Low brow" humor might threaten our sense of maturity, of dignity.
Humor in a chaotic setting, or written in an uneven style can threaten our
equilibrium, our need for order in the world.
Practical jokes are only funny to the brunt of the jokes if they don't feel
offended or hurt, and even then usually only in retrospect since a
successful practical joke usually involves some initial feeling of threat on
the part of the recipient.
"Offensive" humor is not funny to people who take seriously the topic of the
humor. Sexual humor is not funny to people who believe that the loose morals
the humor represents threaten a way of life. Making fun of religious beliefs
is not funny to people who hold those beliefs sacred. Anyone who takes
something very seriously might be offended by humor directed at that
something, if the humor is seen as threatening the importance of that
something.

Using Humor Against Threat
Humor and threat cannot coexist. Introduce threat, and you destroy the
humor. But the opposite is also true. Introduce humor, and you destroy the
threat. We understand this principle and use it frequently.
We make fun of people, things and ideas that threaten us. In doing so we
lessen the sense of threat.
If we feel a threat to our self-esteem we might make fun of who or what is
threatening that self-esteem.
When we're in a situation that feels uncomfortable, we might fight that
threat to our comfort and sense of well-being by laughing nervously, or by
telling jokes or making wisecracks.
Sometimes we invent and tell jokes about things that are so horrible that we
just don't want to face them seriously, and so we end up with Challenger
jokes.
When we meet someone new, before we've developed a rapport and understanding
with them, we might use humor to lessen our sense of threat, and to let the
other know that we aren't a threat.
Dentists are trained to use humor to reduce the fears of their patients.

When I had accounted for the threatening surprises, however, there were
other surprises that remained. What about the surprise of winning the
lottery? What about the surprise of hearing that your daughter is getting
married? (Okay, if you don't approve of her choice, this could be considered
a threat.) What about discovering the keys that you'd lost a month ago, or
finding a dollar on the sidewalk? All of these are non-humorous surprises,
but they are also non-threatening. I analyzed these remaining surprises to
see if they had anything in common. And what I saw in all of them was a
sense of promise, a promise of wealth, of happiness, of prestige, of life
becoming better in some large or small way.

Or Promise
Bombs falling out of the sky are threatening and therefore not funny.
But what if the Publishers Clearing House shows up at our door and tells us
we're their new ten million dollar winner. Is it a surprise? Yes. Do we find
it funny? Probably not. When the surprise shows us promise, fulfills hopes,
resolves problems, we are satisfied, delighted, overjoyed, hopeful, but we
do not find it funny. When the detective discovers the criminal, when the
doctor discovers the cure, when the archaeologist discovers the unopened
tomb, again, there is surprise, but not humor.

And so I have my definition. Humor is surprise without threat or promise. I
have accounted for all of the examples of humor I've analyzed so far. I do,
however, accept the possibility that I will eventually encounter
non-humorous surprises that are neither threatening or promising. When this
happens I will analyze those surprises and try to redefine my theory
further. In the meantime, this theory helps me in my attempts to write
humor.

How This Definition Helps the Humor Writer
When you are writing humor you need to surprise your reader. To do so you
must understand your reader's level of knowledge and experience so you will
know what will surprise them. To help set up the surprise you might set your
reader up by leading them "down the garden path", toward an expectation, and
then throwing in the twist. Or you might rely on the expectations that the
reader already has.
But while writing your humor you also keep in mind what will threaten your
audience. You don't surprise them in ways that will make them feel
threatened. You don't make fun of them. You don't belittle their deeply held
beliefs.
But you can effectively surprise them in ways that will lessen their sense
of threat. You can show the picked-on kid getting the upper hand over the
bully, or like Mercer Mayer did, show the kid frightening the nightmare in
his closet.
And you must also understand that the happy ending and other types of
promising surprise, though possibly very satisfying to the reader, are not
humor. Louis Sachar's Holes has humor throughout it. But the principal
surprises at the end of the book are not humorous, but promising, and
delightfully satisfying to the reader. They leave you in awe, but they don't
make you laugh.

Writing Humor For Children
Writing humor for children can be tricky. If an adult writes humor for
adults, he knows what might surprise other adults, because he knows what
will surprise him. He is aware of the common knowledge and experience that
adults share.
Children, however, have different knowledge and experience than adults. And
their knowledge and experience are rapidly changing. To write humor for
children you must be aware of what children the age you're writing for know
and have experienced. Preschoolers will not understand jokes about
kindergarten. Two-year-olds will not get bathroom jokes. Kids who are just
learning vocabulary will not get puns.
There is a great deal of psychological research on the cognitive devlopment
of children, and while such research might help someone who has no
experience with children understand what children do and don't know at
different ages, such research is not essential to understanding how to write
humor for children. And it would also not accurately portray how I write
humor for children. When I write humor I do not keep in mind the
psychological research on cognitive development. Instead, I just take what I
have learned about children by having been a child, having children of my
own, and interacting with children in school and other settings, and compare
it with what I know about humor. And in most cases this works for me.

www.rickwalton.com




PUBLISHER GUIDELINES

BUSHFIRE PRESS

Bushfire Press is a small, independent publishing house specialising in
music/Arts education materials for primary schools. Our website is
www.bushfirepress.com

We are a 3 person outfit:
Kevin O'Mara - general manager
Mark Leehy - publisher
Lynne Bartlett - marketing manager
(with a couple of part-time office staff)

We do courses & resources in music, singing, recorder, theory. We also
publish a small range of musicals, plays and dance & drama resources.
We work within the Educational Publishing network and do not do Trade
Publishing.

We mostly generate our own titles and publish only a few each year.
We are happy to receive submissions - but require a brief outline initially.
Outlines can be emailed to mark@bushfirepress.com

Mark will reply immediately as to whether the project is appropriate to
current needs and funding availability.

We are a small operation and the review/evaluation process can sometimes
take a while.

We are always happy to hear from people with interesting ideas in music/Arts
education.

We are also always happy to hear from illustrators and musicians who can
prepare musical backings.


Happy to answer further queries

Cheers
Mark Leehy



AUTHOR/ILLUSTRATOR PROFILE


Bonnie Bryant


>From Author, Anita Bell:

This week, I had the great pleasure of meeting and spending a few hours with
Bonnie Bryant, New York author of The Saddle Club Series, Pine Hollow Series
and under her married name "BB Hiller" wrote the novelisations of "Big"
starring Tom Hanks, "Honey I Blew up the Kid", "Karate Kid" and "Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles" to name a few. Primarily published by Scholastic in
the US, Bonnie's Saddle Club series is published in Australia by Random
House Australia (My publisher too! YAY!)

Some really interesting info:

Bonnie is a wonderful, generous, down-to-Earth woman in her late fifties who
has been to Australia 4 times. (And she happily admits that she burst into
tears when she first visited the film set for "The Saddle Club" outside of
Melbourne, with a "Welcome to Pine Hollow" sign emblazoned across the front
gate for her - although amazed to notice that "Pine Hollow" is built on a
hill! She gets on really well with the three actresses from the series, and
although not writing any more - since the books began to compete with each
other for shelfspace as their numbers grew closer to 100 - she says that for
the last few books, she did find herself starting to change the voices of
the girls in the books to match the "voices" of the girls in the series, as
well as the descriptions of the place and horses.)

Bonnie started out as a junior agent for Curtis Brown, New York about 30
years ago (not directly associated with Curtis Brown Melbourne, apparently,
since she said they were affiliated closer to London's branch instead - long
story), but after working on a project with an author, her boss said, "Hey
Bonnie, you can write!' So when a publisher approached their agency looking
for an author who could produce a series of books about girls and horses,
her boss said: "Bonnie can do it!"
To which the publisher replied: "Does she know anything about horses?"
Boss: "She went to a private school, didn't she?" So they decided to give
her a go, even though she confesses to greatly exaggerating her typing speed
and having no former knowledge or interest in horses... Bonnie wrote 20
sample pages with an outline, which was accepted and "The Saddle Club"
series was born.

The publisher asked if she could start producing 12 books a year, and
although she could write a 30,000 word book in about 3 weeks, she confesses
to being totally human and not being able to do it *every* 3 weeks as
well... So she hired about 6 other ghost writers - to which I personally
heaved a major sigh of relief... I mean WOW! Fancy trying to compete with
*that* kind of a track record!! (Even if I stopped writing my finance books
and my military thriller series for teens, I'd still be flat out producing
more than 3 novellas a year for the Kirby's Crusaders series!!)

On the subject of agents: Bonnie also admits that having an agent has not
helped her to get better deals from publishers, since "books only sell what
they sell" so they can only pay what they pay... in fact she has grown to
prefer the smaller advances, because it gives her better royalties which
start paying more regularly and makes tax easier to calculate... and also
film producers want the merchandising rights because that's where they make
their most money and she's actually lost filming deals because they weren't
happy with the merchandising percentages that she'd already "signed away"...
I was also very surprised to hear that many of her biggest books were sold
for very low flat fees. Karate Kid for instance was only "a few thousand"
flat fee, then sold millions... but she doesn't regret it one bit, she says,
because of the "doors it opened" for her in getting the other flat fee
novelisations.

Having an agent has however made a great deal of difference to her career as
a writer, since all of her big deals and book concepts have been sourced for
her and her agent has been instrumental in establishing the two "pen-names"
which are tightly focused, as well as helping her to design a "career path"
for her books.

On the subject of Writing Groups: Bonnie thoroughly recommends joining a
writers group just for children's authors... e.g. she meets every month with
another 10 children's authors who are all published too. So I explained the
challenges that we have in Australia with our much smaller population being
spread out over a much wider area and told her all about kwdownunder and
Pass-it-on and the wonderful in-roads that both have made to helping provide
us with exactly this kind of supportive environment (for writers of all
stages actually) and she was both surprised and impressed.

On the subject of designing characters:
* Bonnie likes to think about her characters' favourite sneakers, clothes
and secrets they're keeping from their best friend or parents.
* Likes to have no more than 3 or 4 main characters
* Thinks of Veronica as her JR of the Saddle Club series... and is her most
fun and reliable character to play with because whenever the plot stalls,
she can always ask Veronica what mischief or jealous "horseplay" she would
like to get up to - which always gets the plot moving again.

On the subject of Plot:
*Structure - She structures approx 13 chapters per book, with all characters
and themes introduced by chapter 3, climax by chapter 10 and everything
resolved by chap 13.
*Aging - although the owner of the stables marries, has a child and then
another child during the series - and although a foal is born in book 3 and
the girls are riding it by the end of the series, the girls themselves do
not age more than one birthday each during the whole series.
* One plot per 30,000 word book... but for novelisations, she highlights
plots A, B & C on the storyboard and then writes them, keeping them as
simple as possible - i.e. deleting all bad language and sex scenes for the
children's versions ( a lesson she learned the hard way from "Bog" see
below).

On the subject of Language:
* "Big" - was published with only 2 swear words in it, but because of this
was marketed for adults only and missed out on about 3/4s of the potential
sale market.
* Saddle club series was written to be timeless by speaking "correct"
English with next to no slang or technology.
* For novelisations, she likes to pinch and adapt famous opening lines from
other adult books so parents can enjoy them while reading to children...
e.g. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles starts out: "It was the worst of times."

Most favourite books by other authors are many, but include:
* Where the wild things are... well, who doesn't like that one LOL?
* Charlotte's Web - because of the characterisation and plot revelations in
the first and last paras of the book
* "Blubber" by Judy Blume, which she found incredibly offensive and
confronting to read because it's about childhood bullying and teasing and
she has been at one time or another both a victim and a culprit, so she
considers it to be incredibly eye opening from a writers' point of view.

Most recommended book about writing for children:
"Write a Childrens Book and get it published" by Barbara Sueling, (published
by Wiley books)... note: Barbara is one of the other authors in Bonnie's
monthly-meet writers' group in New York.




YOUR WRITING TIPS
**A new section that is begging for your attention. Please feel free to
Pass them On!**

All new writers search for the writing tip that will bring them a contract.
There are heaps of how-to books on writing, plenty of writing courses,
writing groups and of course our wonderful PIO. New writers are happy to
spend time and money on these things but it astounds me that so few take as
much care over their reference books. I have many very useful books on my
shelves, some of them extremely well-used and others that help me only
occasionally, but all are essential to my writing. Here are some of them:

Macquarie Dictionary (I used to use the Oxford but I believe Australian
writers should be guided by the Macquarie)
The Australian Writers Marketplace
The Penguin Working Words
(To me, these first three are absolutely essential)
The Right Word at the Right Time
Macquarie Book of Slang
Oxford Concise Dictionary of Proverbs Teenspeak
The Cassell Guide to Common Errors in English
Treasury of Familiar Quotations

And anyone who hasn't read Lynne Truss's book, Eats Shoots and Leaves...or
is it... Eats, Shoots and Leaves is missing out on a real treat...Mappy





USEFUL BOOKS/WEBSITES

"So, what actually happens once you sell a book? After the negotiations are
over and the contracts are signed, once you've had the first-date
conversation with your new editor during which you alternately gush at each
other and then apologize for gushing, and generally both hope to make as
good an impression as possible (Hey, editors are people too--and when they
buy a book, they are hoping for a long and profitable relationship.) what
happens then?"
http://www.livejournal.com/users/matociquala/623789.html



BOOK REVIEWS

Yellow-Bellied Goalie

by Tracy Hawkins
Illustrated by John Yaheh

ISBN 1-74164-003-4
Blake Education

Reviewed by Helen Evans

If you are looking for a sporty book for the 8 to 10 year olds,
Yellow-Bellied Goalie is an excellent choice. It is perfect for kids who
play hockey or a team sport.

Many coaches give children the chance to experience playing in different
positions and that is what happens to Ben. This week he has to be goalie
and he's scared. Tracey captures that feeling of despair kids will be so
familiar with when faced with something new. Will he let his team down? He
feels like a chicken and then his friend teases him as he tries to walk in
his full playing gear. If only he could run away. The opposing team is
all fired up, especially tough Jack. But everyone is in for few surprises.

This story moves along quickly and has the right mix of humour and tension.
You don't need to be a hockey buff to enjoy it.

P.S. Tracey's name should be spelt like this with an 'e.' The 'e' got lost
in the publishing!



Safina and the Hat Tree

by Cynthia Hartman
Illustrated by Haley O'Brien

ISBN 0-646-43541-8


Reviewed by Helen Evans


Safina is a teacher who is diagnosed with cancer. The story is simple and
honest. Cancer touches the lives of so many people and can be a worrying
mystery to children. The bright cartoon style illustrations are full of the
colours children love and reflect Safina's positive and cheerful approach to
life. Words and illustrations work together to show Safina's feelings. A
study guide is included at the end of the book that should be valuable to
teachers. The book is recommended by the Cancer Council of NSW and should
be in every early childhood centre and infants school.

Cynthia Hartman, a cancer survivor, lives in the Illawarra region of NSW.
This is her first book.



The following titles will be reviewed by Laurine Croasdale on 10th October
2005 on the ABC Afternoon Show in Canberra


The Printer's Devil
by Paul Bajoria
Simon and Schuster



Born to Bake
by Phillip Gwynne Illustrated by Gus Gordon
Puffin Books



Far Away the Fairies Fly
by Jane Simmons
Orchard Books



Balanda
by Mary Ellen Jordan
Allen & Unwin





INDEPENDENT CHILDREN'S BOOKSHOPS



CRITIQUE GROUPS BULLETINBOARD
**Looking to create or join a critique group - here's the place!**



MILESTONES
**A new section for members to share their achievements**

I'm celebrating the acceptance of a children's book called Getting Rid of
Wrinkles by Blake Education for their Gigglers series. This is particularly
exciting for me as it's been 10 years since the release of my two previous
publications (both picture books). During that time I've had many stories
and poems for children published in magazines but couldn't seem to get
another book mss picked up for publication. Several acceptances fell through
due to publishers either going out of business or changing hands and a
number of stories almost made it. I was beginning to think I was a has-been
when I'd barely got started! The acceptance from Blake has inspired me to
start submitting to more publishers in the hope the drought is over.

Teena Raffa-Mulligan, who is still smiling weeks after the congratulatory
phone call.



INSPIRATIONAL QUOTES

Carl Jung:

"The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely."



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PASS IT ON SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
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Give your piece a title heading: eg New Publications; Seeking; General
Information; etc.
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Jackie Hosking
Editor/Compiler PASS IT ON
www.jackiehosking.com
www.motherbehavingbadly.blogspot.com